Looking back over the past few week’s columns, there have been a lot of modern "craft" breweries featuring. Their wacky, new-fangled brews with unusual ingredients and flavours are perhaps necessary to get them noticed and keep things "fresh" in a competitive world where new breweries are all shouting for attention. So I thought this week I’d try out some of the old school beers from Germany and the Low Countries – beer’s spiritual heartland, to my mind at least – to see why these guys are still lording it over the new kids on the block.
Verhaeghe "Duchesse de Bourgogne": Flemish Red Ale
£3.40/6.2%/330ml
Dating back to 1885, the Verhaeghe brewery can be found in the Belgian province of Flanders. The region once had strong connections with Charles the Bold (duke of Burgundy, back in the day) and his wife Margaret of York, to whom this beer doffs its hat. It’s a mixed fermentation ale made using an old brewing style from West Flanders using roasted malts, low bitterness hops and maturation in oak casks. It smells like a rich, well-aged balsamic vinegar with a depth that gives it a real sense of venerability. Like a good balsamic, this has a sweet and sour flavour. Tangy apple notes add a bit of fruitiness, and a full body and length combine to make a beer that surely wouldn’t have been out of place on the duchess’s table.
Frank Boon "Mariage Parfait 2013": Geuze
£5.40/8%/375ml
The Boon brewery can trace its brewing history as far back as 1680, although it’s had a number of facelifts over time and the modern lambic styles really took off back in the 70s. This one has a slightly different blend (or mariage, you could say) from Boon’s regular oude geuze, consisting of 95% aged mild lambic and 5% young lambic, adding sugar and wild yeast for secondary fermentation. This all comes together to create a beer that has a grassy, slightly sour nose with a very clean, soured flavour with hints of grapefruit and citrus peel. Also, it improves in the bottle and will keep for up to 20 years; maybe you could lay some down and tell me what you think in a few years’ time?
La Trappe: Blond Trappist Beer
£3.20/6.5%/330ml
Well, you can’t get much more old school than Trappist monks, really, can you? The Koningshoeven abbey in the Netherlands has been keeping the old tradition alive since 1884. As one of only eleven monasteries worldwide that is allowed to label their beers as Trappist, by following a strict set of guidelines, you just know you’re getting the real deal. It has a pronounced ester character that smells like an old fashioned sweet shop, with pear drops being particularly prominent on the nose but taking more of a foamy banana note on the palate. All that said, it’s not actually sweet, and is a surprisingly light but well-rounded beer.
Schneider Weisse "Tap 5": Weizenbock
£4.80/8.2%/500ml
Although Schneider Weisse have been making wheat beers since 1872, Tap 5 is a more recent collaboration with Brooklyn brewery, so I’m maybe fudging the "old school" thing a bit here… But if you’re a traditionalist then fear not: it still conforms to the "Reinheitsgebot" Bavarian purity laws, so I’m letting it pass! It really is a fantastic beer though, showing spicy notes on the nose with mace, ginger and pepper all underpinned by a touch of banana and a floral character that lightens it all. The carbonation is very smooth and the palate has hoppy floral flavours and a slight honey sweetness all working with that characteristic ester I love in wheat beers.
Uerige "Sticke": Alt Bier
£4.00/6%/330ml
Uerige have been brewing since 1862 and ever since then, on the third Tuesday of January and October, they’ve released their "Sticke" beers. Richer than a regular alt bier and made with more malt and hops, the name comes from "stickum", or "whisper" in the local dialect, because the locals would whisper to each other that the brew master had been too generous with his ingredients. There are definite malt aromas alongside toffee, popcorn and a hint of coffee. The palate has a bit more of a caramel sweetness and again, a good malty character with a rich texture. Too bad they only make this twice a year though!
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